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Background: The unprecedented COVID-19 pandemic has become an endemic disease of global public health importance. Mass COVID-19 vaccination has been an essential global control strategy amidst challenges of limited acceptance. Because of globalization, COVID-19/similar diseases vaccination acceptance and the determinants in any particular setting are important global public health issues. Using a novel and pragmatic framework, this study explored determinants of COVID-19 vaccination acceptance among community members during the pandemic in Ebonyi state, Nigeria, and made policy-relevant recommendations on how to increase vaccination acceptance in subsequent outbreaks/pandemics., Methods: This qualitative study was based on the novel and pragmatic Individual Experiences and Perceptions and Complacency, Confidence, Convenience, and Compulsion (Four 'Cis') Determinants of Vaccination Acceptance Conceptual Framework - Omale INDEPT FORCIS Framework. On April 26 and 27, 2022, 20 semi-structured face-to-face focus group discussions were conducted in local language and pidgin English with 100 purposively selected consenting/assenting community members aged 15 years and above who had resided in the community for at least one year. Data was analysed using deductive (with some inductive) thematic analytic approach., Results: The many, diverse, and significant determinants of COVID-19 vaccination acceptance found were factors that were individual-related (individual experiences and perceptions and knowledge about COVID-19, COVID-19 vaccine/vaccination, and the vaccination process/system, sociodemographic, individual's condition (e.g. pregnancy)); COVID-19-related (factuality, transmissibility, frequency, severity, fatality); COVID-19 vaccine/vaccination-related (safety/side-effects, effectiveness, speedy production); COVID-19 vaccination process/system-related (real availability/accessibility); family, group, and other individual-related (experiences and perceptions and actions); and broader local, national, international, and global (LONING) context-related (socio-political, economic, historic, health system factors). The broader LONING contextual factors included the unprecedented disinformation/conspiracy theories, non-sustained COVID-19 risk/behaviour change communication, enforcement and non-enforcement or termination of peculiar control policies/measures (lockdowns, social/physical distancing, use of face mask etc.), mandatory COVID-19 vaccination policies, provision of incentives, past experiences regarding the Ebola viral disease outbreak, (un)trustworthiness of the Nigerian health system and her international/global partners, and the (un)trustworthiness of the governments in Nigeria and bad/good governance, inclusive of the failure of the Ebonyi state government to distribute the COVID-19 palliatives to the people during the lockdowns., Conclusion: The evidence illuminates complex and interrelated, specific underlying, and peculiar policy-relevant LONING determinants of COVID-19 vaccination acceptance and emphasizes the need for concerted and comprehensive LONING strategies (involving all the relevant LONING stakeholders/policy makers) in addressing these determinants to increase vaccination acceptance among community members in subsequent outbreaks/pandemics in Ebonyi state/Nigeria and similar settings., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

Background: COVID-19 continues to be a disease of global public health importance and requires long-term management and control. Health workers' (previous) experiences and perceptions regarding the COVID-19 pandemic and COVID-19 vaccination/vaccination process will influence not only their subsequent use of control measures but also public experiences/perceptions. We explored the COVID-19 and COVID-19 vaccination and the vaccination process experiences and perceptions, and their predictors, among the health workers in Ebonyi state, Nigeria., Methods: We conducted an online-offline analytical cross-sectional survey between March 12 and May 9, 2022 among all categories of health workers (clinical/non-clinical, public/private) working/living in Ebonyi state who consented to participate and were selected by convenience/snowballing techniques. A structured electronic questionnaire was used to collect data: self-administered via WhatsApp and interviewer-administered via KoBoCollect for participants who did not have WhatsApp. Data was analysed using descriptive statistics and bivariate/multivariate generalized linear models., Results: Of the 1276 health workers surveyed: 55.8% had strong COVID-19 experience and perception, 80.7% had good COVID-19 vaccination expectation and perception, and 87.7% had positive COVID-19 vaccination process experience and perception. The most important predictors of the extent and level of COVID-19 and COVID-19 vaccination and the vaccination process experiences and perceptions were level of place of work (primary-secondary/tertiary), level of attitude towards COVID-19 (vaccination), and level of knowledge about COVID-19. Another important predictor was place of work (public/private)., Conclusions: The evidence indicate the factors that should guide subsequent policy actions in the strategies to enhance the COVID-19 and COVID-19 vaccination and the vaccination process experiences and perceptions of health workers (and their use of control measures) in Ebonyi state, Nigeria, and other similar contexts. It also indicate factors to be considered by future policy actions regarding similar diseases., Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist., (Copyright: © 2024 Omale et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.)

Background: Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) is the range of sexually, psychologically and physically coercive acts used against adult and adolescent women by a current or former male partner. It is a major public health problem globally. This study determined the prevalence, patterns and predictors of IPV amongst female undergraduates in Abia State., Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted from January - February 2022 amongst 306 female undergraduates in Abia State. A mixed method of an online structured questionnaire created on Google forms & onsite self-administered questionnaire were deployed for data collection. Descriptive, bivariate and multivariate analyses were done using IBM SPSS Version 26.0. The level of significance was set at 5%., Results: A total of 306 respondents participated in the survey. The overall prevalence of IPV amongst female undergraduates was 51.2% (95% CI: 44.8-57.6%). Emotional abuse was the most common form of abuse 78.9%, followed by Physical abuse 42.0% and Sexual abuse 30.8%. Predictors of IPV reported include female earning/receiving more than their partner monthly (aOR = 2.30; 95% CI: 1.20-4.41); male (partner) alcohol consumption (aOR = 5.17; 95% CI: 2.46-10.88), being a smoker of cigarette/marijuana (aOR = 11.01; 95% CI: 1.26-96.25) and having witnessed domestic violence as a child (aOR = 3.55; 95% CI: I.56-8.07). Adverse effects such as unwanted pregnancies (12%), miscarriages (10%), eating/sleeping disorders (21%) and bruises (23%) amongst others were noted in some of the victims., Conclusion: Over half of all female undergraduates in Abia State have experienced IPV with emotional abuse being the commonest. Some Individual and relationship factors were identified as predictors of IPV. We recommend intensifying primary prevention campaigns against risk factors identified like smoking and alcohol consumption., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

The COVID-19 pandemic has changed into an endemic COVID-19 disease and health workers continue to be at high risk. The situation requires continued use of COVID-19 control measures by health workers and this will likely depend on their sources of information/knowledge/attitude about COVID-19 and previous use of COVID-19 control measures. We explored the COVID-19 information sources, knowledge, attitude, control practices, and the predictors, among health workers in Ebonyi state, Nigeria. We implemented an online-offline analytical cross-sectional survey from March 12 to May 9, 2022 among all categories of health workers (clinical/non-clinical, public/private) working/living in Ebonyi state who gave consent and were selected via convenience/snowballing sampling. Data was collected with a structured self-administered/interviewer-administered questionnaire via WhatsApp/KoBoCollect. Descriptive/inferential analyses were done including multivariate generalized linear models. 1276 health workers were surveyed. The commonest individual source of information about COVID-19 was health workers (used by 83.8%), followed by radio (67.9%), television (59.6%), family members/relatives/friends (57.9%) etc. The main individual source of information for majority of the participants was health workers (for 35.0%) followed by radio (24.5%), television (14.4%) etc. The most trusted individual source of information for majority of the participants was health workers (for 39.4%) followed by radio (26.0%), television (14.3%) etc. Interpersonal sources were the main/most trusted source of information for the majority (48.0%/49.8%) followed by traditional media (39.4%/40.6%) and internet/social media/SMS (12.6%/9.6%). 42.3%, 81.3%, and 43.0% respectively had good knowledge, good attitude, and good control practice about COVID-19. The most important predictors of the main/most trusted sources of information about COVID-19 were place of work (public/private), level of place of work (primary-secondary/tertiary), age, and years of working experience. Good knowledge about COVID-19, good attitude towards COVID-19, strong COVID-19 experience/perception, working at a tertiary facility, tertiary education, and decrease in years of working experience were strong predictors of good control practice about COVID-19. This study's evidence regarding the commonest/main/most trusted information sources and control practice about COVID-19 should be considered by later COVID-19/similar health emergencies' policy actions to optimise emergency health information dissemination and use of control measures by health workers in Ebonyi state/Nigeria/other similar settings., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

Background: COVID-19 is still a disease of global public health importance which requires long term application of control measures as millions of new infections or re-infections and thousands of related deaths still occur worldwide and the risk of an upsurge from new strains of the virus continues to be a threat. The decrease in the use of and non-use of preventive public health measures are among the factors fuelling the disease. The (previous) experiences and perceptions of people regarding the COVID-19 pandemic, COVID-19 vaccination, and the vaccination process are factors that will influence subsequent use of preventive/control measures. We explored the COVID-19 and COVID-19 vaccination and the vaccination process experiences and perceptions, and their predictors, among the community members in Ebonyi state, Nigeria., Methods: We conducted an analytical cross-sectional study between March 12 and May 9, 2022 among all consenting/assenting community members aged 15 years and above in 28 randomly selected geographical clusters. A structured interviewer-administered electronic questionnaire in KoBoCollect installed in android devices was used to collect data which was analysed using descriptive statistics and bivariate and multivariate generalized estimating equations., Results: Of the 10,825 community members surveyed: only 31.6% had strong COVID-19 experience and perception, 72.2% had good COVID-19 vaccination expectation and perception, and only 54.2% had positive COVID-19 vaccination process experience and perception. The most important predictors of the extent/level of COVID-19 and COVID-19 vaccination and the vaccination process experiences and perceptions were level of attitude towards COVID-19 and COVID-19 vaccination and level of knowledge about COVID-19. Other important predictors were marital status, educational level, and main occupation., Conclusions: This study's evidence, including the identified predictors, will inform subsequent policy actions regarding COVID-19 in the strategies to improve the COVID-19 and COVID-19 vaccination and the vaccination process experiences and perceptions of community members (and their use of preventive/control measures) in Ebonyi state and Nigeria, and other similar contexts. It will also inform future policy actions/strategies regarding similar diseases., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

Introduction: Vaccine-preventable infectious diseases (VPDs) are major causes of morbidity/mortality among children under 5 years of age worldwide and in Nigeria/Ebonyi state. Routine childhood immunisation is an invaluable prevention strategy for many VPDs. Due to suboptimal coverage and untimely receipt/delay in receipt of vaccinations, outbreaks of VPDs such as measles, yellow fever, diphtheria and others continue to reoccur around the world and in Nigeria/Ebonyi state. This study aims to evaluate the effectiveness of hybrid parents and health workers adaptive intervention in increasing the optimal/timely (cumulative age-appropriate) routine childhood immunisation coverage in the communities in Ebonyi state, Nigeria., Methods and Analyses: A two-arm, parallel, open label, covariate-constrained cluster-randomised controlled trial with 1:1 allocation of 16 geographical clusters (the nearest catchment areas for at least one public primary healthcare (PHC) facility with at least 500 households or a population size of 3000) will be used to evaluate the effects of hybrid/combined parents and PHC workers adaptive engagement compared with control. The primary outcomes are the optimal/timely (cumulative age-appropriate) receipt of the recommended vaccines in the routine childhood immunisation schedule by children aged 5-9 completed months and 10-11 completed months and the age-appropriate vaccines receipt score for the recommended vaccines. The outcomes will be measured through a population-based household survey of at least 15 children aged 5-9 and 10-11 months per cluster at baseline and at the end of the study using a structured interviewer-administered questionnaire in KoBoCollect installed in android devices. All analyses will be done using a cluster-level method on as-randomised basis., Ethics and Dissemination: Ethical approval for the trial was obtained from the Ebonyi State Health Research and Ethics Committee (EBSHREC/01/06/2022-31/05/2023) and verbal consent will be obtained from participants. Study findings will be reported at local/national and international levels as appropriate., Trial Registration Number: ISRCTN59811905., Competing Interests: Competing interests: None declared., (© Author(s) (or their employer(s)) 2023. Re-use permitted under CC BY-NC. No commercial re-use. See rights and permissions. Published by BMJ.)

Objectives: Health workers are at particular risk of contracting the COVID-19. However, non-acceptance of COVID-19 vaccination has been a noticeable challenge the world over and in Nigeria where supply constraints have also been an issue. We evaluated COVID-19 vaccination acceptance (the uptake, hesitancy, intention to receive and timeliness of the intention to receive) and the determinants, and the predictive power of acceptance factor compared with availability/access factor, among health workers in Ebonyi state., Methods: We conducted an online-offline survey, between 12 March 2022 and 9 May 2022, among all consenting health workers (clinical/non-clinical, public/private) working/living in Ebonyi state and who were selected by convenience and snowballing techniques. Data were collected using structured self-administered questionnaire distributed via WhatsApp and interviewer-administered questionnaire in KoBoCollect installed in android devices. Data were analysed using descriptive statistics and generalised linear models., Results: 1276 health workers were surveyed. Uptake was 68.2% vaccinated, 47.4% fully vaccinated and 20.9% partially vaccinated. Hesitancy was 22.6% or 71.2% among the unvaccinated (76.3% of hesitancy due to refusal and 23.7% to delay). Intention to receive was 36.0% of which 55.1% gave the intended time (days) to receive with a median (IQR) of 30 days (7-133). The strongest and most important predictor of COVID-19 vaccination acceptance was COVID-19 vaccination expectations and perceptions. Other important predictors were COVID-19/COVID-19 vaccination process experiences and perceptions. Acceptance factor was a stronger predictor compared with availability/access factor., Conclusion: The slow pace of COVID-19 vaccination coverage among the health workers in Ebonyi state/Nigeria may encounter a bottle-neck due to the high refusal rate among the unvaccinated. COVID-19 vaccination policy interventions in Nigeria and other similar settings should, in addition to sustaining availability and access, prioritise improvement of COVID-19 vaccination expectations and perceptions (regarding importance/safety/effectiveness) and COVID-19 risk communication among the health workers., Trial Registration Number: ISRCTN16735844., Competing Interests: Competing interests: None declared., (© Author(s) (or their employer(s)) 2023. Re-use permitted under CC BY-NC. No commercial re-use. See rights and permissions. Published by BMJ.)

Introduction: the ravaging COVID-19 pandemic has worsened the levels of unmet need (UMN) for family planning (FP). A pulse survey showed that FP services were interrupted during the lockdown in 68% of countries. There is a need to investigate the demand gap for FP among women in the postpartum period. This study aimed to determine the prevalence and predictors of UMN of FP among women in the extended postpartum period attending immunization clinics., Methods: this was a facility-based cross-sectional study among 485 women recruited from 5 health facilities using a random sampling technique and proportional to size allocation. Data was collected using an interviewer-structured questionnaire. Analysis was done using IBM SPSS version 26. Adjusted odds ratios with 95% confidence intervals were computed. The level of significance was 5%., Results: the total unmet need was 45.4% (95% CI: 40.2-50.7) with a higher need for child spacing (60.4%) compared to limiting pregnancies (39.6%). The mean age was 30.3 ± 6.1 years. The significant predictors included age [35-39 years (aOR=5.39, 95% CI: 1.61-18.06); ≥ 40 years (aOR= 32.48, 95% CI: 6.48-162.77)], lower education status (aOR= 5.21, 95% CI: 2.09-13.01), lower income (aOR =2.21, 95% CI: 1.10-4.46), rural residence (aOR= 4.27, 95% CI: 2.15-8.47), denomination [Pentecostal (aOR= 4.09, 95% CI: 1.77-9.43); Orthodox (aOR= 5.44, 95% CI: 2.03-14.58)] and poor knowledge of postpartum FP (PPFP) (aOR= 33.93, 95% CI: 13.21-87.12). The commonest reason for FP non-use was fear of side effects., Conclusion: close to half of the women in the extended postpartum period experienced UMN for PPFP. Policymakers should consider these factors when designing FP interventions., Competing Interests: The authors declare no competing interests., (Copyright: Chidinma Ihuoma Amuzie et al.)

Introduction: The COVID-19 pandemic has gravely affected the lives and economies of the global population including Nigeria. The attainment of herd immunity through mass COVID-19 vaccination is the foremost control strategy, however, the deployments of COVID-19 vaccinations are facing challenges of non-acceptance. Despite the efforts of the Nigerian government and COVAX facility in making COVID-19 vaccination more available/accessible, the vaccination rate remains unexpectedly very low in Nigeria/Ebonyi state. Therefore, it is important to investigate the acceptability of COVID-19 vaccination to elucidate the explanations for the very low coverage rate. This study aims to evaluate/explore COVID-19 vaccination acceptance and the determinants among community members and health workers in Ebonyi state, Nigeria., Methods and Analyses: The study is an analytical cross-sectional survey with a concurrent-independent mixed method design. Quantitative data will be collected from all consenting/assenting community members aged 15 years and above, in 28 randomly selected geographical clusters, through structured interviewer-administered questionnaire household survey using KoBoCollect installed in android devices. Quantitative data will be collected from all consenting health workers, selected via convenience and snowball techniques, through structured self-administered questionnaire survey distributed via WhatsApp and interviewer-administered survey using KoBoCollect installed in android devices. Qualitative data will be collected from purposively selected community members and health workers through focus group discussions. Quantitative analyses will involve descriptive statistics, generalised estimating equations (for community members data) and generalised linear model (for health workers data). Qualitative analyses will employ the thematic approach., Ethics and Dissemination: Ethical approval for this study was obtained from the Ebonyi State Health Research and Ethics Committee (EBSHREC/15/01/2022-02/01/2023) and Research and Ethics Committee of Alex Ekwueme Federal University Teaching Hospital Abakaliki (14/12/2021-17/02/2022), and verbal consent will be obtained from participants. Study findings will be reported at local, national and international levels as appropriate., Trial Registration Number: ISRCTN16735844., Competing Interests: Competing interests: None declared., (© Author(s) (or their employer(s)) 2022. Re-use permitted under CC BY-NC. No commercial re-use. See rights and permissions. Published by BMJ.)

Background: Buruli ulcer (BU) is a debilitating neglected tropical disease which causes disability and mostly affects inhabitants in impoverished settings where access to medical care is challenging. This study aims to determine the effect of training community members as volunteers for or in the detection and referral of people who have Buruli ulcer to the hospital., Methods: The following study is a before and after study in the BU-endemic Local Government Areas (LGA) of Ebonyi State. A cluster random sampling technique was used to select 90 volunteers from three LGAs (30 from each LGA). In each LGA, the volunteers underwent a one-day training and six months field work to identify all those who have any form of ulcer on any part of their bodies. A short questionnaire was used to capture socio-demographic characteristics of the patient, site of the ulcer, duration of the ulcer, initial appearance of the ulcer, referral to hospital, result of laboratory investigation, and treatment received. The data was analysed using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) for Microsoft Windows version 20 software. The Z test statistic was used to compare the number of referred BU patients before and after the intervention by LGA. The Chi square test was used to examine the association between the dependent and independent variables., Results: The mean age of volunteers was 39 ± 9.5 while mean age of the patients was 42.3 ± 17.1. Most of the ulcers were on the legs (79.4%) and lasted 1-5 years (65.6%). There was a significant increase in the proportion of BU suspects identified by the community volunteers in all 3 LGAs (Afikpo north (p =  < 0.001), Abakaliki (p = 0.02), Ikwo (p = 0.001). The duration of the ulcer was associated with the detection and referral of the patients with higher levels of detection and referral among those whose ulcer had lasted 1-5 years in two of the LGAs (P < 0.001)., Conclusion: We recommend that program managers and stakeholders integrate and scale up the services of trained community health volunteers for the rapid detection of Buruli ulcer cases in rural endemic communities. Awareness and sensitization campaigns on BU preventive measures should be intensified., (© 2022. The Author(s).)

Objective: To identify and compare the health service-related factors associated with male involvement in family planning services among the rural and urban areas in Abia State, Nigeria., Design: A community-based cross-sectional study., Setting: Twelve communities (six urban and six rural) in Abia State, Nigeria., Participants: Five hundred and eighty-eight (588) men aged 15-59 years and resident in the study area 6 months before the study were recruited., Main Outcome Measure: Male involvement in family planning services., Results: The mean ages of the respondents were 41.8±8.0 years and 43.1±8.0 years in the urban and rural areas, respectively. Active male involvement in family planning services was significantly higher in urban areas (62.6%, 95%CI: 56.8%-68.1%) compared to the rural areas (47.6%, 95%CI: 41.5%-53.2%. p<0.001). The predictors of male involvement included gender preference of healthcare workers (aOR=1.75, 95%CI:1.01-3.03) and attitude of the healthcare workers (aOR=2.07, 95%CI:1.17-3.67) among the urban participants, compared to occupational status of the respondents (aOR=2.50, 95% CI: 1.16-5.56) and the availability of male-friendly clinics (aOR=2.27, 95%CI:1.25-4.15) among the rural participants., Conclusion: Health service-related factors associated with male involvement varied between the urban and rural settings. Stakeholders should target addressing health service-related factors by types of settlement while designing family planning programs targeting men., Funding: No funding was obtained for this study., Competing Interests: Conflict of interest: None declared, (Copyright © The Author(s).)

Background: Male involvement in family planning (FP) remains low in male-dominant communities. Family planning contributes to the regulation of fertility and population growth in Nigeria. Increasing male involvement in family planning services is crucial in reducing maternal morbidity and mortality in patriarchal societies such as Nigeria. This study identified the determinants of male involvement in family planning services in Abia State, Nigeria., Methods: This was a cross-sectional study conducted in twelve communities of Abia State, Nigeria. A total of 588 married men who met the eligibility criteria were recruited using a multistage sampling technique. An interviewer-administered semi-structured questionnaire was used to collect data on the variables. Univariate, bivariate and multivariate analysis was done. The level of significance was set at 5%., Results: The overall level of active male involvement in family planning services was 55.1% (95% CI:51.0-59.2%). The mean age of the respondents was 42.4 ± 8.0 years. Access to television (aOR = 1.58, 95% CI: 1.05-2.39), spouse employment status (aOR = 2.02, 95% CI: 1.33-2.06), joint decision-making (aOR = 1.66, 95% CI: 1.05-2.62), and accompanying spouse to the FP clinic (aOR = 3.15, 95% CI: 2.16-4.62) were determinants of active male involvement., Conclusion: At least, one out of every two men was actively involved in family planning services. This was determined by access to television, employment status of spouse, joint decision-making, and accompanying spouse to the FP clinic. There is a need to focus on the identified factors in order to further improve the active involvement of men in FP services., (© 2022. The Author(s).)

Objectives: To ascertain the prevalence and pattern of reported facility-based disrespect and abuse of women during labour in Abia State, South-East, Nigeria., Design: A cross-sectional questionnaire-based study., Setting: One urban and one rural healthcare facility in Abia State- Federal Medical Centre, Umuahia and Nigerian Christian Hospital (NCH) Nlagu, respectively., Participants: A total of 312 women who were recently delivered of their babies in the two facilities in Abia State and attending postnatal clinics were sampled for the survey., Main Outcome Measure: Disrespect and abuse D&A) during labour among women who give birth in healthcare facilities in Abia State., Result: In all, over half (54.5%) of the women experienced disrespect and abuse in Abia State (50% urban and 63.5% in rural areas). The commonest form of disrespect and abuse was non-confidential care (22.9%). The commonest disrespectful and abusive care received was lack of privacy in the labour ward (18.3%)., Conclusion: The study recorded a high prevalence of reported facility-based disrespect and abuse of women during delivery in Abia State. Training and re-training healthcare providers to promote respectful care, advocacy to policy makers and healthcare stakeholders on the development of respectful maternal care policies and further research in the area are needed., Funding: No funding was obtained for this study., Competing Interests: Conflict of interest: None declared, (Copyright © The Author(s).)

Introduction: physical inactivity has been identified as the fourth leading risk factor for global mortality due to non-communicable diseases. Prevalence rates of 91.0% and 62.2%, have been documented among civil servants in the northern and southern parts of Nigeria, respectively. There is a paucity of data regarding the relationship between physical inactivity and environmental factors among civil servants in the State. This study assessed the prevalence and perceived environmental factors associated with physical inactivity among civil servants in Abia State Nigeria., Methods: we conducted a cross-sectional study in which we recruited 440 civil servants using a multistage sampling technique. We used an interviewer-administered structured questionnaire to collect data on sociodemographic, physical activity, and neighbourhood environmental attributes. Descriptive, bivariate and multivariate analysis were done. The level of significance was set at 5%., Results: the mean age of the respondents was 39.0±9.2 years, and 61% were females. The prevalence of physical inactivity was 48.4% (95%CI: 43.7%-53.2%). The putative environmental factors included perceptions of low residential density areas, perceived absence of neighbourhood sidewalks, perceived unavailability of bicycling facilities and the perception of an unsafe neighbourhood due to night crimes. The predictor of physical inactivity was the perceived absence of neighbourhood sidewalks (aOR=2.02, 95%CI: 1.10-3.73)., Conclusion: in this study, physical inactivity is prevalent among civil servants in Abia State. The need for the stakeholders in collaboration with the Ministry of Environment to focus on the provision of sidewalk facilities, layout of residential areas and limit security risks in the State to enhance physical activity is highlighted., Competing Interests: The authors declare no competing interests., (Copyright: Chidinma Ihuoma Amuzie et al.)

Background: COVID-19 has led to restrictions on movements and lockdown measures, which have resulted to higher utilization of over-the-counter drugs compared to prescription-only drugs. This study determined the prevalence, pattern and predictors of self-medication for COVID-19 prevention and treatment., Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted between October and November 2021 among the residents of Umuahia, Abia State. The respondents were selected using a snowball sampling technique, and a self-administered semi-structured questionnaire was used to collect data on the variables via Google forms. Descriptive, bivariate and multivariate analyses were done using IBM SPSS version 26. The level of significance was set at 5%., Results: A total of 469 respondents participated in the survey. The overall prevalence of self-medication for COVID-19 prevention and treatment was 30.3% (95%CI: 26.7-34.1). The most commonly used medication was herbal products (43.7%). This was mainly self-prepared (41.5%). The major source of information for self-medication was from family members (39.4%). The majority of the respondents reported fear of isolation (76.3%), followed by fear of stigmatization (75.7%) as the triggers of self-medication. Older age (aOR = 1.87, 95% CI: 1.11-3.13), lower educational status [No formal education (aOR = 3.78, 95% CI: 1.28-11.19)], [Primary education (aOR = 2.15, 95% CI: 1.17-3.097)] and perception to cost (aOR = 2.29; 95CI: I.24-4.24) were the predictors of self-medication., Conclusion: Every one in three residents of Umuahia, Abia State, practiced self-medication for COVID-19 prevention and treatment. Some economic and socio-demographic factors were significantly associated with self-medication. We recommend intensifying public awareness campaigns on the risk of self-medication., (© 2022. The Author(s).)

Greater cane rats (Thryonomys swinderianus) are important sources of bushmeat in southern Nigeria. Here, we collected and examined intestinal helminth parasites of these rats sold at Omagwa bushmeat market, Rivers State, Nigeria. Twelve intestinal tracts of T. swinderianus were purchased from December, 2020 to February, 2021, and transported to the laboratory for examination. Each sample was incised and its contents examined in 0.9% normal saline solution. Parasites encountered were washed in same solution, fixed in 70% ethanol and subsequently identified using taxonomical keys. Prevalence of infection was computed using standard formula for computing parasite ecological parameters. Four parasitic nematodes were isolated. Oesophagostomum venulosum and Strongylus sp. infected six hosts each accounting for a prevalence of 50.0%. Mean intensity of infection was about 12 parasites/infected host for O. venulosum and about 7 parasites/infected host for Strongylus sp. Trichuris paravispicularis had a prevalence of 33.3% and mean intensity of about two parasites/infected host, while Toxocara vitulorum was recovered as a single individual from one host at a prevalence of 8.3%. We conclude that T. swinderianus serves as host to intestinal nematode parasites, and recommend full parasitological investigation of the animal, where possible, to isolate and identify other helminth parasites not reported in the present research.

Introduction: healthcare workers are at higher risk of COVID-19 infection with ease of infection transmissibility to coworkers and patients. Vaccine hesitancy rates of 56% and up to 25% have been reported among healthcare workers in US and China respectively. Vaccination is known as the most effective strategy to combat infectious diseases. Acceptance of the COVID-19 vaccine plays a major role in combating the pandemic. This study assessed the sociodemographic factors associated with COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy among healthcare workers in Abia State., Methods: a cross-sectional study among 422 healthcare workers was conducted in Abia State with an online-based questionnaire. The questionnaire extracted information on socio-demographics and willingness to take vaccine uptake. Descriptive statistics was used to calculate frequencies and proportions. Bivariate analysis was used to test the association between the socio-demographic factors and the outcome variable (vaccine hesitancy). Logistic regression was conducted to identify the predictors of COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy. The level of significance was 5%., Results: mean age of the respondents was 40.6 ± 9.5 years and 67.1% were females The COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy rate was 50.5% (95%CI: 45.6%-55.3%). Socio-demographic factors included age, marital status, location of practice, profession, and income. Vaccine Hesitancy was predicted significantly by younger age (aOR=9.34, 95%CI:2.01-43.39), marital status (single) (aOR=4.97, 95%CI:1.46-16.97), lower income (aOR=2.84, 95%CI:1.32-6.08), and profession - Doctor (aOR=0.28, 95%CI:0.11-0.70), Nurse (aOR=0.31, 95%CI:0.15-0.64) and other allied health professionals (aOR=0.22, 95%CI:0.10-0.44)., Conclusion: COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy was high among healthcare workers. Significant sociodemographic predictors influence the uptake of the COVID-19 vaccine. We recommend that the Federal and State Ministries of Health conduct awareness campaigns targeting the younger age group, singles, lower income class, and non-clinical staff., Competing Interests: The authors declare no competing interests., (Copyright: Chidinma Ihuoma Amuzie et al.)